Dentmon's game-winner lifts Zalgiris over Milan

Justin Dentmon scored the game-winner with 3.9 seconds remaining as Zalgiris Kaunas held off EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 73-71 at Zalgiris Arena on Friday night. The win improved Zalgiris to 3-4 in Group B, while Milan dropped to 4-3, but held the potential head-to-head tiebreaker because of its 7-point win in their Round 2 game. Zalgiris built a 15-point lead in the second quarter, but Milan rallied in the fourth quarter and got the first tie of the second half, 71-71 with 26 seconds to go. But Dentmon banked in a clutch shot and Vytenas Lipkevicius stole the ensuing inbound pass to seal thecrucial win for the Lithuanian champions. Dentmon finished with 15 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds, while Martynas Pocius scored 13 points in victory. Tadas Klimavicius added 9 points and Paulius Jankunas grabbed 11 rebounds along with 6 points. For Milan, Keith Langford had 29 points plus 6 rebounds, David Moss netted 12, while Alessandro Gentile scored 11 in defeat.

First quarter: A see-saw battle for starters

Both sides got a lot of its players involved offensively early on. Gentile started the scoring with a runner, but Dentmon drew a foul behind the arc and made all 3 free throws to score the first points for the hosts. After a C.J. Wallace layup, Pocius sank a triple for Zalgiris, but Langford answered with a short jumper to tie it at 6-6. Jankunas scored a layup, before Curtis Jerrells hit the first three-pointer for Milan. After a floater from Lipkevicius made it 10-9, Gentile continued the early see-saw battle with a drive to the hoop. Zalgiris took 14-11 lead with baskets from Likpevicius and Dentmon, before both teams got a few defensive stops and forced a couple of turnovers. A jump shot from Langford snapped the scoring drought, and Moss added a baseline jumper to put Milan back in front, before Tomas Dimsa drove the length of the floor for a buzzer-beating layup, and a 17-17 tie, at the end of the first quarter.

Second quarter: Zalgiris pulls away with 12-0 run

Pocius assisted Klimavicius for a monster dunk to start the second quarter, then drove to the hoop himself on a fastbreak for a 21-17 lead. After a timeout, 3 free throws from Ksistof Lavrinovic, a jumper from Sarunas Jasikevicius, and an alley-oop basket from Klimavicius made it 29-17. Milan scored its first points, a free throw from Langford, almost five minutes into the quarter, but a fastbreak layup from Pocius made it a 15-1 run to start the quarter, and forced another timeout from visiting coach Luca Banchi. Nicolo Melli snapped a seven-minute drought with a dunk-plus-foul, and Jerrells followed it up with a three-pointer to make it 33-24. Pocius scored from close range, but on the other end Gentile hit a long two, and Langford a three, 35-29. In the final minute of the first half, Lipkevicius drove the baseline for a tough reverse layup, before Langford's layup cut it to 39-31 at halftime.

Third quarter: Hosts protect modest advantage

Melli opened the third quarter from close range, but Dentmon answered right back from long range. Langford and Lavrinovic traded layups, before a reverse layup from Moss cut it to 44-37. A series of layups continued with one from Klimavicius and another easy one from Moss. After Langford scored in a crowd to make it 48-41, Samardo Samuels dunked. Vytenis Cizauskas and Langford traded shots from downtown, 51-46. But Jasikevicius sank a three-pointer, too, then threw a pass for a Robertas Javtokas alley-oop dunk and a 10-point lead. Before the quarter’s end, Langford drove for a layup, but Pocius scored on a breakaway as Zalgiris entered the final 10 minutes with 60-50 lead.

Fourth quarter: Zalgiris holds off Milan with Dentmon’s game-winner

Wallace scored the first layup of the fourth quarter, before Jankunas and Cizauskas scored uncontested layups for the hosts to make it 64-52. Moss scored 6 points on consecutive possessions, a basket-plus-foul followed by a three-pointer, and Gentile added a driving layup to get within 66-60 midway through the quarter. Klimavicius gave the hosts more breathing room with a layup, and then made a big block on Wallace. But Jerrells and Gentile hit from behind the arc to help Milan come within 71-69, and Wallace made both free throws with 26 seconds to go to tie the game at 71-71. But Dentmon made a driving layup with 3.9 seconds to go. Milan had a chance for last possession, but Lipkevicius stole the inbound pass to seal Zalgiris’s win.

Head Coaches

STOMBERGAS, SAULIUS

Zalgiris Kaunas

"It was a tough and emotional game. We lost the advantage we built, and in the future this will be a great lesson for our young team, but I can only applaud their resilience. My team deservedly won. Our defense in the first half worked flawlessly. This victory is very important for us in a fight for a place in the next stage."

BANCHI, LUCA

EA7 Emporio Armani Milan

"Zalgiris played the first half with great intensity. Without a doubt, it was nice that we were able to recover at the end of the game, and even had a chance to win. After such a game, even though we lost, I am happy that we were able to regain control of the game. These types of games are another step in our road to get better."

Players

JANKUNAS, PAULIUS

Zalgiris Kaunas

"It was chaotic at the end, but most importantly, we managed to win. Of course, it would have been ideal that we won by a higher margin and just quietly won the match. In the last minutes coach emphasized defense, ordered us to prevent the opponent's three -point shots, because we only had a two-point lead. We allowed them free throws, but that allowed us to get a really important victory."

MOSS, DAVID

EA7 Emporio Armani Milan

"It was a difficult game, but Zalgiris played very well. The coach said after the game that it was important we stayed positive and continued to fight. This does not change all the good that happened this season, so we have to keep our focus and move on."